Chevy SS Successor May Be Built In North America, Spawn Wagon Variant

Chevrolet’s new SS muscle sedan has just arrived on the market but production of the car will last only until the end of 2017--at the latest--since the only place in the world it is produced at, Holden’s plant in Australia, has been confirmed to shut by the same date. Could the SS end up a one-hit wonder like two previous Holden-built cars sold here, the Pontiac GTO and G8?

Not likely, says a new report.

Car and Driver is reporting that a successor is planned, based on a heavily updated version of the Zeta platform found in the current SS (the most recent update was only a minor one). This updated platform, code-named Zeta II, is said to be used for both an SS successor and a new sports wagon that successor will spawn. The wagon has previously been hinted at by General Motors product chief Mark Reuss and may end up reviving Chevy’s Nomad nameplate.

A successor for Chevy’s Caprice PPV, which is essentially a tamer, long-wheelbase version of the current SS, is also said to be planned. While the Caprice PPV has proven popular amongst police testers, the fact that it’s made outside North America has limited its sales success. That won’t be the case for its successor, as Car and Driver is reporting that it and the other cars based on the Zeta II platform will be built in North America.

When might we start seeing these cars? Production of the first examples is expected to start as early as 2015.

For performance fans in Australia, the successor to the SS may be offered locally as a replacement for the current V-8-powered versions of the Holden Commodore, since the next generation of the beloved Aussie sedan will be moving to a front-wheel-drive platform.